


+/-

by azure_is_bloo



Category: His Dark Materials - Philip Pullman, Original Work, Sort of - Fandom
Genre: Gen, This is weird, azure has joined the chat, fucking multiverse, fucking parallel universes, i won’t explain anything, nor is it panjava bc like a wise pía once said “panjava is overrated”, once again, phillip pullman has left the chat, this is not a dæmon au, you fill in the blanks
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-04
Updated: 2019-12-17
Packaged: 2020-01-04 22:10:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 5,759
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18352703
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/azure_is_bloo/pseuds/azure_is_bloo
Summary: Sam and Kaid’s lively adventures in a strange new world!! More @ 6pm





	1. +/-

Sam walked home, Kaid in front of him. Sol was setting; the shadows of the cacti grew long and the satellites were rising, turning purple and blue. Timid stars peeked out where Sol and Vishnu were crossing paths, part of the constellation Orion could be seen. The Rose Moon moved more quickly into the dusk. A few coyotes started to howl and Kaid howled back. 

Sam paused for a moment to listen for the return call. Kaid turned his ears in the direction of the howl and strained to hear. It grew silent, save for a tumble weed passing by. 

“Hope we catch the bus,” Sam said and continued on. 

Kaid wagged his tail. “Me too,” he said. 

Sam and Kaid reached the bus stop. It’s evening lights automatically switched on at 7:00 pm and the bus was running late. 

“You know how I know it’s late?” Kaid asked. 

“How?” said Sam, eating some leftover popcorn from his bag. 

“Because I can’t smell the exhaust!” 

Sam nodded. He hadn’t noticed that. He took out his water bottle from his bag and his phone and earbuds from his overall pocket. He plugged them in and noticed he hadn’t finished listening to “Feel” by the Bombay Bicycle Club. He decided to listen to the rest of it. Next, “Fake Love” by BTS came on. Kaid head banged and quietly sang along, sitting on the bench beside Sam. 

At 7:15 pm, the hybrid electric bus pulled up to the stop. The regular bus driver was working and a few usual passengers were sitting near the windows. 

“Hi, Sam!” the old man bus driver said. “Where can I take you tonight?” 

“Hi, Fred,” Sam replied. “Trailer Park Station Please!” 

It was their thing to greet each other like this. It could liven up a dull night. 

The passengers by the window all nodded or waved to Sam as they all knew each other, living in the same community. The Arizona State patch on Sam’s bag matched the state logo on Mr. Gretcher’s shirt. He was a middle aged man who was somewhat acquainted with Sam due to circumstance. They always exchanged small talk on bus rides, sometimes in Spanish or other languages. Mr. Gretcher’s dæmon always laughed at whatever stranger-than-fiction story he has to tell. Her and Kaid got along well. After all, there weren’t that many dæmon friends Kaid could make here in Sunshine, Arizona. 

The bus stopped at Trailer Park Station at 7:30 pm. Sam told Mr. Gretcher and the bus driver good evening, Kaid wagged his tail and then they walked the rest of the way home. Vishnu and the Rose Moon cast enough light to walk without a torch. Either way, Kaid could be a seeing eye coyote if need be. When Sam got home his dad had the kitchen window open, his mom had lit a small bonfire and opened a six pack of beer with her friends in their lawn chairs. A waft of Hamburger Helper drifted out the kitchen. 

Sam and Kaid went inside.


	2. ❦

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sam and Kaid at home

[Kpop on main] 

Sam posted the photo of the Ghobi hawk he snapped when it was attacking a jackrabbit with a music overlay of “Simon Says” by NCT 127. 

[So sad 😔] misha416 commented 

[That is the way of the desert...🌵☀️] Sam replied back. Someone commented #Nature only for someone else to spam reply @peta below them. Sam blocked the bot and refreshed his notifications. 

[Nasa where my fucking space ship?] 

One of Sam’s followers posted a photo of the latest International Space Station builds that Nasa was going to launch in two months. 

[2015: we’ll have flying cars!   
2030: we haven’t landed on Rose or Vishnu in years but at least the government is actually funding us again]

Sam liked this meme and kept scrolling. Kaid yawned in a exaggerated way. 

“What’s up Kaid?” 

“We’re kinda hungry,” he said 

“Dad is almost done with dinner, just a few more minutes.” Sam replied. 

Kaid hopped on the bed, spun around and rested his head on Sam’s lap to look at the memes he was liking. Across the house he could hear their mom say good bye to her friends and turn on the television. A documentary was on. 

“In 1998, after the war was over the various star-doors in the USA were closed along with those found internationally by forces still unknown to us. With the help of researchers and star-door theorists, we are able to pinpoint the location of the 29 doors that were found in the midwest...” 

Sam fidgeted and then went to the kitchen with Kaid. 

“Hamburger helper is ready!” Sam’s dad shouted and then “Oh, there you are!” when Sam sat down at the counter. His dad got him a plate and a spoonful of hamburger and elbow macaroni. Sam’s mom got herself a plate and sat down in the living room to keep watching the documentary. 

“Sam? You can come watch the tv with me if you want,” his mom said. Sam picked up his plate and sat down on the sofa. 

Kaid kept eyeing the food occasionally but Sam wouldn’t feed him this time. The last time that happened, his dad lectured him about “waste of good food” and questions about if Kaid actually ate anything. Hamburger helper was still tasty though. 

“So, the summer started last week,” his mom said between bites, “What are you gonna do this summer?” 

Sam took a mouthful of hamburger but one piece of macaroni fell to his lap and Kaid took it. His mom saw and he gave he a coyote smile. 

“Well...” Sam started. 

“You could do volunteer hours at the pet shop. They’re always hiring.” 

“Yeah but the pet shop is in town. And the hours are kinda long.” 

“Hmm,” she said and took a drink of tea from her mason jar. “I think you’ll be okay if you decide to take the job.” 

“Maybe,” Sam said as he kept eating. 

“Tomorrow they’re doing sign ups if you wanna go check it out,” said Sam’s dad from the chair at the kitchen counter. 

Kaid whined in mild annoyance. 

“I’ll go to town tomorrow.” Sam said. He finished his hamburger helper, washed his plate off and went back to his bedroom. Before going to bed be struggled out of his binder, washed and stayed up for another hour to read the latest chapter of “Frisbee Gone Wild: a boy and his dæmon” before finally going to sleep. His mom’s documentary was still playing the the background.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> working for money is overrated. also casually trans on main. pullman needs a task manager to end the program that just started running in his brain to calculate the existence of a trans character in hdm but i don’t need any of that because i am Chaos. i’m gonna give the gays what they want


	3. 𓅪

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> pet shop!!

Sam had a dream he was in the pet shop with many parrots and rabbits and mice. Hamsters nested in his hair, the parrots scratched and bit him and the rabbits tripped him up. Kaid tried catching them but he tripped too and then the manager walked in and starting blaming Sam and Kaid for the mess, mostly Kaid because he scared the animals. Sam tried reasoning but he woke up before he got a word in. Kaid curled up close to him and whimpered until Sam patted his head. 

“Why can’t I ever dream about food?” Sam mumbled. 

It was 8:00 am and the shop opened at 10 am. 

Sam yawned and drug himself and Kaid out of bed. His radio was playing “134340” so he decided to leave it on. 

First he got his “Not A Lady” shirt, jean shorts, white socks and baseball cap, laid them on his bed and went to the bathroom. The water was already warm so his parents must have left early this morning. Kaid wanted to wear a shower cap so Sam gave him one of the old lime green ones. 

He put two pieces of toast in the eight section toaster and turned off the tv his mom left on last night. It was currently 67 degrees fahrenheit outside so when his honey toast and ham was ready he left his jersey at home. Sol was rising and the Rose Moon was directly above them. Sol’s rays was turning it hot pink and vanilla ice cream white. Sam could see some of its craters from here. Vishnu was approximately in the same place it was last night and all shades of blue. 

When Sam and Kaid got to Trailer Park Station, one girl was sitting there with a monarch butterfly dæmon on her shoulder. Her parents were taking photos a few yards away. Kaid wagged his tail and Sam waved. 

She giggled at her dad trying to find the right camera angle before the roadrunner flew away. It did fly off and her dad’s photo came up empty. 

“They like traveling,” she said, “We just left Texas and after this we’re heading to Nevada and California.” 

“Have you ever been to Nova France?” Sam asked. 

“Nope!” she said. 

“Well,” said Sam while laughing, “I heard it’s cold this time of year!” 

She laughed with Sam. “Yeah my parents hate cold weather. I’d hate to live there during the Vishnu winter. They have three more night months to survive.” 

The outbound bus showed up at the stop. The girl said bye and then her parents got their luggage and boarded. 10 minutes later the town bus arrived with a different bus driver and different passengers. 

“I could’ve turned into a pronghorn and we could get to town quicker,” Kaid said. 

“Yeah but you can’t change anymore,” Sam replied. “Don’t worry the bus is easier.” 

Kaid climbed on the bus seat with Sam to watch the cacti go by and Sol rise. The bus driver said to make sure the new passengers had room and Sam just moved closer to Kaid. 

———

When Sam and Kaid got to town a long line of people were outside the new Xphone store Sam’s dad complained about so much. Greg’s Burger Joint and Zico’s Pasta had long lines too. Sam might go to one of them before leaving town. The pet shop was on the next block so Sam and Kaid walked there. 

The merchandise store where Sam got his Arizona State badge was open, the gas station parking lot was full of cars and some protesters who shouted about the use of fossil fuel. A group of five people did the same outside of Greg’s Burger Joint but no one inside paid attention. The last time Sam asked about it Mr. Greg said that he learned to get used to it. 

Sam and Kaid reached the pet shop as it was opening. The window had a big “Now Hiring” sign taped to it and the manager was sweeping the floor. She looked out the window and saw the top of Sam’s head and opened the door. 

“Well, we got ourselves a potential volunteer!” said the manager. 

One of the pet shop employees came from the back with a few bags of fish food and dropped them on the floor. 

“I hope they can life weights...” the employee said. 

“I’ll show you around!” said the manager. 

Sam and Kaid followed her around the shop to look at the reptiles, rodents and birds and talk about employee expectations. Kaid tried to stay out the way but some of the smaller animals hid or tried to make themselves look bigger. Kaid tried to make himself smaller but he was fairly medium sized regardless. 

“We need at least one more cashier but you need prior experience for that...” the manager trailed off. Sam shrugged it off. 

“If you want to do the interview tomorrow I can set up a time or next week. Maybe Duixday or Bramday next week, same time?” 

“I’ll have to ask my parents,” Sam said and took one of the manager’s cards from a stack, said “Have a nice day” and then left. 

On the way out of town Sam and Kaid stopped at the convenient store to buy more popcorn and a mango drink. The bus station was mostly empty so they guessed most of the tourists cleared out for the day. It was hot so Sam and Kaid sat in the back of the bus where the air conditioning blew the most. 

“Why didn’t you wanna take the job?” Kaid asked. 

“Because,” said Sam, “the pets are kinda scared of you.” 

“The manager seemed nice.” 

“Yeah but I don’t think she thought it was a good idea either,” said Sam. 

Kaid thought for a moment. 

“I’m sorry,” he said. 

Sam hugged Kaid’s neck. “You don’t have to say sorry. Anyway, town is kinda weird. Collecting bottles is more fun.” 

“Yeah!” Kaid said and licked Sam’s face. They passed a few cars on the way home, a old station wagon, a green pick up truck, a hybrid electric sports car and a broken down bus. 

Sam and Kaid got home at 12:45 pm. Their parents weren’t home so they turned on the air conditioning and every fan in the house. Sam listened to the radio and gave half his klondike bar to Kaid. He loved ice cream. They played cards and then board games on the living room floor which was hard for Kaid because couldn’t hold the cards or dice. Sam kept winning anyway.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i looked back on this and didn’t realize i made the sky transgender flag colors lmao. umm yeah ＮＯ ＯＮＥ ＤＯＥＳ Ａ ＰＡＳＴＡ ＢＯＷＬ ＬＩＫＥ ＺＩＣＯ‘Ｓ ＰＡＳＴＡ. ＮＯ ＯＮＥ


	4. 𓃦

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> sam dressed up as where’s waldo with glasses: people always ask what you’re doing not how you’re doing

Egoist (Olivia Hye)(ft. JinSoul) was playing on repeat. It rained for the first time in months. Sam’s biology homework was laying on his bed and he hadn’t touched it. Kaid sat on the bed beside him and watched the rain fall. It washed away sand and dirt from the foundations of the trailer homes. The sky was dark and the bottom half of Vishnu sat in the clouds. People put cinder blocks near their homes. Online, people said it was their fault for living in Sunshine instead of Phoenix. 

Red light from the music video reflected on Sam’s ceiling. He watched his phone screen turn it different colors. Kaid curled up in a little ball beside him. 

“We’re safe!” Sam’s dad said when he came through the front door. The trailer wasn’t about to wash away anymore so Sam guessed he was right. The severe weather alert came across Sam’s phone 15 minutes late along with every other device in the house at the same time. 

“Do you wanna talk about what happened?” Kaid asked. 

“I think I’ll be alright,” Sam replied. 

Kaid thought the storm would be passing soon. They didn’t last very long in the desert.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sam has good music taste okay. also life is hard sometimes


	5. ✎

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> school sucks   
> also tw for deadnaming and/or dysphoria mentions.

Sam and Kaid sat in class while their substitute teacher taught a lesson about logarithms and exponential functions. Sam’s friend wasn’t there today so him and Kaid had the table to themselves. Kaid decided to be a hamster and explore the obstacle course Sam built from pencil cases and small booklets. He took notes but the lesson was still boring. They tried to make it less obvious that they weren’t paying attention but obstacles courses were more fun. 

“They are inverses of each other...” the substitute droned on. “In order to do a transformation you need a parent function...” She snapped her fingers to get their attention. Most of the students dozed. 

“Kayleigh, how about you move here,” the substitute said and pointed to Sam and Kaid’s table, “That way Samantha won’t be lonely.” 

Sam didn’t think he was lonely. But he did think he didn’t like his name very much. Maybe it’s just the way it sounds. He also hates that his mom combs his hair in his face. 

Kayleigh pushed Kaid’s obstacle course out of her space. Kaid now had a house made from a book. He seemed pretty content. 

“You will work on this worksheet with your table and then turn it in. No exceptions,” the substitute announced. Sam and Kaid worked out some problems but Kayleigh seemed less worried about the worksheet and more worried about Sam. 

“Can I pet him?” Kayleigh asked. Kaid shifted into a bumblebee and crawled on Sam’s shirt. 

“Hmm, no....” Sam said. 

“Why not?” It’s cool!” she insisted. 

“Well-“ 

“I can’t bring my dog to school so why can you bring your thing?” Kayleigh said. 

“The scientific name is dæmon,” a boy from the next table said matter of factly. 

“Whatever, Jonathan,” Kayleigh said back. 

“Anyways,” Jonathan continued, “the sub has one.” 

Sam looked at the sub. She sat at the desk and graded worksheets. Her fox dæmon watched the class closely. Sam felt Kaid shivering. They wished their old teacher and her parrot dæmon was here but they were in the hospital since last month. 

“I heard she just got out the hospital again,” Jonathan said and Sam was excited until he realized Jonathan was talking about the substitute. “She might be going back.” 

Sam hoped their old teacher would be back soon. 

Sam and Kaid rode the school bus home and endured taunting from some of their classmates because they were chanting “Samantha the Substitute”. Sam couldn’t think of anything he had in common with her. Kaid growled a few times but then the kids threatened to call the bus driver back. 

When the bus stopped at Trailer Park Station Sam and Kaid ran home to their room and stayed there until 10 pm. It was the weekend so they could stay up late but they didn’t eat dinner and their mom had to persuade them out of their room. 

On Solday night their house got a call from the school that said Sam’s old teacher wouldn’t be back but that he’d also have a new substitute tomorrow. Sam and Kaid didn’t hear this call because they were fast asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is a flashback like last chapter btw. things are way better now. also substitute teachers are a pain in the ass especially when they’re not used to accepting environments


	6. ⛢

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> gender blues 🎶

Sam and Kaid sat on the living room sofa during the evening. At 5:50 pm their dad would be home and he’d probably need help bringing the groceries indoors. Until then they sat and watched TV and thought about things. 

“I’m a boy and you’re a boy too, right?” Sam asked Kaid. 

“I guess?” Kaid replied. 

“I never really thought about it since then. I know I’m a boy...” 

“But also something else?” said Kaid. 

“Yeah!” Sam licked his grapefruit lollipop, “What ‘bout you?” 

Kaid wondered. He tilted his head left and right and wagged his tail in a curious way. 

“You don’t know either?” asked Sam. 

“Hmm, nope!” 

Sam sighed. 

“I guess we could be one thing but also something else too?” Kaid said. 

“Hmm,” Sam hummed. He wondered what the something else could be, then he got tired of wondering and made a bowl of ramen noodles and a bologna sandwich for Kaid. They ate on the front porch and watched Sol fall below the horizon. 

“Hey, I think I got it,” said Sam when he finished his noodles. Kaid had already inhaled his sandwich. 

“I’m listening!” said Kaid. 

“When I told everyone I was a boy I thought that if I was only a boy everyone would get it but they were gonna understand me anyway. And now I guess I don’t have to be just one thing. I can be one thing and something else too.” 

Sam paused and looked at Kaid lying beside him. “What does that make you?” 

Kaid shook his coat and sat up. “I don’t know. I think we’re the same, both boys and both something else?” 

Sam and Kaid didn’t have the words to describe it. There were plenty of labels to look through but whenever they did none of them actually fit. 

“I think I’m okay just being us,” said Sam. Kaid put his head on Sam’s lap and wagged his tail. Sam patted his dæmon gently and scratched behind his ears. 

“Dad’s gonna be home soon, let’s make some more noodle for dinner!” said Sam. He took his noodle bowl, Kaid picked up his paper plate in his mouth and they went inside to start boiling some more ramen. Outside, it slowly got dark as the stars and the last quarter of the Rose Moon became visible.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> happy nonbinary people’s day! i didn’t know we had a day but i’m glad i know now! gender is weird (shrug) 💛💜🖤


	7. ୴

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> sam and kaid visit Navajo County, AZ

Sam’s dad handed him a flier that said “Childhood Support Group”. He thought that maybe it wasn’t just any support group but one that was different somehow. 

“They have meeting every Roseday and Friday in the next county if you wanna go,” his dad said. 

Sam remembered the last support group he went to wasn’t that great. He guessed it was kind of boring and this one was also in Navajo County like the last one. Maybe he’d give it one more try. 

“I’ll think about it,” said Sam. He and Kaid went to their room to tape the flier to their wall. 

On Friday before they left the house, Sam pulled a card from his tarot deck. It was the mother of cups card. He hoped it would be a good day. 

——

Sam’s dad dropped him and Kaid off in front of a old abode church. At first Sam wanted to go to the gift shops in town once he saw his dad’s truck disappear but Kaid drug him inside anyways. 

Inside, a older lady who had a parrot dæmon greeted them and took them into the meeting room near the back of the church. About thirteen other people his age and all their dæmons were there socializing. Some were big, some were small, some people had two or more, some of them changed and others didn’t. Sam had never seen so many in one place. 

“Hi, I’m Sam and this is Kaid,” he introduced the two of them to the crowd. They all introduced themselves but didn’t pay much attention to him except one person. 

“I moved here from Seattle,” said the person who introduced herself as Chelsie. She had one dæmon that could change and one that was a quoll. Sam remembered reading about quolls in his biology textbook. They sat on her lap and waved at Kaid. Kaid wagged his tail at them. 

“So are you new here? I never saw you in this group,” said Chelsie. 

“My dad gave me a flier,” Sam said. 

“Well, I’ll tell you all about it!” she said. One of her dæmons became a coyote just like Kaid and the two of them played around until the lady that greeted them began the first meeting. 

——

“That was interesting,” said Sam as he waited for his dad to pick him up. 

“Yeah, but it’s the same thing every summer,” said Chelsie. Her mom was taking a few minutes longer than usual to arrive. 

“Oh,” Sam said, “but I’ve never heard anything like that before. ‘You’ll learn to love and accept yourself and your dæmon’”. 

“You’ve never heard that?” Chelsie asked. 

“Well, not like that.” 

Kaid and Chelise’s dæmons were playing on the grass behind them. 

“My dad always told me to not beat myself up so I don’t. Me and Kaid are okay.” 

“That’s good, that you’re confident,” said Chelsie, “It took us a long time to start feeling okay.” 

“By the way, what’s your dæmon’s names?” 

“I’m Richard, that’s the name our mom gave us but I have a secret name,” the quoll dæmon riding on top of their sibling giggled. 

“And I’m Chrysanthemum,” said the second one. “Chelsie named me herself and I love being a skunk!” 

Sam patted Kaid’s back. “Kaid doesn’t change anymore but we like skunks too!” 

They all waited on the sidewalk until Sam’s dad arrived. Chelsie asked Sam if he was coming to the Roseday meeting and he said yes because he has changed his mind about the group. On the way home a storm started to blow in. Sam and Kaid hoped they would get home before the downpour.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> friends! group therapy! good feelings!


	8. 𖤍

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the desert is a weird place

Sam and Kaid were walking home. It was the evening, and Sol hadn’t set yet but they had their eyes on the sky.

“There’s no clouds today,” said Sam.  
Kais sniffed the air. There hadn’t been any cars on this road today either. They walked back in the direction of the bus stop for thirty minutes.

“What time did the website say it’s supposed to happen?” Kaid asked.

“Between 4 o’clock and 6:30 but you never know,” said Sam.

The weather was 85 degrees, around 20 degrees cooler than a month ago. It still felt hot so Sam carried a pack of water bottles with him. He gave some water to Kaid too because he couldn’t be a lizard and cool off anymore.

“We should try to catch the 4:30 bus,” Kaid said and walked in front of Sam. “Dad is gonna call us for dinner soon.”

“Yeah, but we might miss it if we leave now. If we do see it I’ll get you a celebratory ice-cream sandwich.”

“Hmm, Kaid hummed, “what about steak?”

“I don’t have enough money.”

“Deal’s off then!” Kaid said and ran ahead so Sam would have to run with him.

“Come back here!” Sam said and Kaid was running just fast enough that Sam couldn’t quite catch up. He wasn’t wearing his binder so he didn’t have to worry about hurting his ribs. Sam finally caught up but Kaid jumped on him, stole his baseball cap and ran again. Sam laughed and that didn’t help him catch his breath at all.

They ran past the old radio station of the 10s’ with the rusted radio towers and cables. The local government had made it into a museum but it didn’t look that old to Sam.

“That’s still the largest thing I’ve ever seen, said Sam, finally catching his breath. 

“There aren’t any buildings as tall as that in town.”

“It’s still shorter than the bank building in Phoenix.”

Sam looked up at the towers and cables and he saw something shining. He thought it was a two seater plane from the local airport but then he saw it looked more like a person from a distance. It was shining like a light. That was exactly how the website described it. 

“Kaid! There it is, look!” Sam said and pulled out his phone to start recording.

When it flew past the old station a surge went through the cables and one of them came loose and fell. It kept moving away until Sam couldn’t see it anymore. He felt the atmosphere change. He wanted to hurry to the bus station and he touched Kaid’s back to get him moving because he was just standing there.

“C’mon kaid, we can check the video when we get home,” Sam said quietly.

Kaid stayed close to Sam the whole way home. After dinner, Sam uploaded the video and a few people left comments saying it has fake and asking for more evidence. Sam didn’t have any so they left it alone.

They weren’t able to fall asleep for hours and Kaid hadn’t said anything since they got home. The next day, Sam told Chelsie about it and she believed every word he said.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> UFOs are even weirder!! 🛸


	9. 𐂞

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> gone shopping!

Sam and Kaid went to Navajo county again on Vishday to visit the town there. They had the whole day to themselves so they visited plenty of stores like the book store and candy store. The people there didn’t mind Kaid as much, that’s what they liked about Navajo county. It was more expansive though and Sam’s wallet didn’t like that. There was no one protesting at the burger restaurant like at the one in Sunshine county. Sam liked the milkshakes in his county better. 

“I want that!” Kaid said to Sam in the clothing and merchandise store. It was a jacket for children but it could fit Kaid. 

“I don’t know if I have enough,” said Sam. He counted his money and he did have enough but not enough to get ice cream and what Kaid wanted. 

“We can get ice cream back in Sunshine. I think you’d look cool in that jacket.” 

“I know I would!” Kaid said, “It fits me perfectly. Now where’s the fitting room because I’m gonna need help.” 

Sam walked up to the clerk’s desk. “Can we have a fitting room?” 

“Sure!” the clerk said “but that might not be your size?” 

“It’s no problem,” Sam said and patted Kaid’s ears. 

At first Kaid tried to put it on himself but that didn’t work and Sam helped him get his legs in the sleeves and adjust it. Kaid went to look in the mirror and wagged his tail at his reflection. 

“It looks good on you, but I feel like something is missing...” Sam trailed off. 

“Patches,” they said together. 

Kaid put his paws up on the service desk so the clerk could scan the tag. 

“You sure you don’t want a pair of glasses with that?” the clerk asked. 

“I’m kinda broke now, so nope!” Sam replied. He wanted a new pair but he already had some and Kaid borrowed theme often. They headed home. 

Sam’s closet had some clothes that had fallen down but there was a cardboard box on the closet shelf where Sam put his patches he collected. 

“Alright now you gotta pick out which ones you want and I’ll sew them,” Sam said and dumped the patches out on the floor. Kaid sniffed around and picked out some: another Arizona state patch, a striped one and one shaped like a coyote. Sam pricked his fingers a few times but when he was done Kaid’s jacket looked even cooler. 

They took a photo in the mirror and sent it to the Childhood Support Group groupchat and they all loved it. When their parents got home they also love it and didn’t make a fuss about Sam spending too much money. 

But Kaid was the one who loved it most of all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Solday -> Sunday  
> Roseday -> Monday  
> Duixday -> Tue(twos)day  
> Cauxday -> It’s Cauxday my dudes  
> Bramday -> Bc Thursday is boring af  
> Friday -> Bc Friday lit af 😎 never changing Friday babey!  
> Vishday -> Saturday
> 
> and thems the days of the week alternate universe style


	10. ⭑

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> shopping for plants y’all need anything?

Sam and Kaid, Chelsie, Chrysanthemum and Richard were hanging out at the garden mall. The mall owner had made it into a whole greenhouse and Chelsie brought some flower seeds to plant there. She forget to bring extra water but Sam’s backpack had three bottles of water so they were good. 

Kaid, Chrysanthemum and Richard were smelling the flowers in the bed at the bottom of the broken escalator. There weren’t any chrysanthemum flowers planted yet so Chelsie buried some seeds there from her pouch. Sam sprinkled some water on top of them. The mall owner did love plant donations. 

“Kind of amazing how this place has all these plants inside but when you go outside” she said and gestured to the exit, “it’s still all dry old desert.” 

“Hey, the desert isn’t that bad,” said Sam. “It even has iguanas. Sometimes!” 

Chrysanthemum and Richard turned into one green and one orange iguana. Kaid couldn’t be a iguana so he crouched down beside them and pretended. 

“Yeah, but I miss my hometown sometimes,” Chelsie said. 

“I’ve never been too far from home but traveling sounds nice,” Sam replied. 

“I was traveling last year and we went into this really tall building in Phoenix. You can literally see everything from there!” said Chelsie. 

Sam imagined it. There was a red dirt hill in the badlands he and Kaid liked to climb and the hills where the radio towers were. That was the highest up they’d ever been. 

Sam and Chelsie walked upstairs where the owner planted blackberry bushes where the mall fountain used to be. Kaid started eating a few and so did Sam. 

“This reminds me of some mythology I read about in class last year,” said Chelsie. 

“Which one?” Sam asked. 

“I think it was Greek or Roman? Similar to Pandora’s box though. I can’t remember it now but I think some people eat a poisonous berry and get evicted from their home because their landlord is terrible? And their landlord curses their whole bloodline too.” 

“Ouch,” said Sam, “imagine giving someone a life sentence for snacking.” 

“I would be in jail so many times,” Kaid said as he ate more berries. 

Richard turned into a mouse and ate a berry with Kaid and now it was dying them purple. 

“I decided I want to be known as Blackberry even if I change my mind next week,” Richard said. 

“That was quick,” Chelsie said, “We like it though!”

“Blackberry it is!” Chrysanthemum said from Chelsie’s shoulder as a prairie dog, “it tastes good doesn’t it?” 

“Now I have two little plants following me everywhere,” said Chelsie fondly. “We also lied, Blackberry’s secret name actually changes all the time but it’s secret because my parents don’t know.” 

“I get that,” Sam said, “all I did was shorten my name and Kaid used to be named ‘Kamalnayan’ before we changed it.” 

“Ooo fancy name. How did your parents know to prepare?” 

“They knew there was a ‘increased likelihood’ of me arriving as dual package because of family heritage so they picked a name,” Sam said. 

“My parents weren’t expecting anything but me but then I came with two so they gave one of them my grandpa’s name and didn’t name Chrysanthemum at all,” she said. 

“Fucking rude,” he said. 

“I know, right?” 

They all walked around the old department stores that had flower pots and vegetable plants growing beside them. Sam found a old t-shirt sitting on the counter and took it with him. It was soda company merchandise and Sam liked that style. 

Graffiti and tile murals were all over the walls and Sam saw one mural that was a person with wings and another one that was abstract. He took a photo of them with his phone. The abstract one had vines growing between the tiles and some of them fell off so Sam pocketed those for arts and crafts. Before they left the mall, Chelsie bought them all popcorn at the food stand outside and Sam didn’t let Kaid eat any because kernels always got stuck in his teeth. 

“By the way, that mural we saw with the wings looks like that thing you saw. Actually I think it’s connected to the mythology thing too,” Chelsie said as they waited for her ride. 

“Really?” Sam asked. 

“Don’t worry though, they’re a type of cryptid I know all about. I can shoot you a link when I get home.” 

Sam was kind of hoping it was just a UFO him and Kaid saw. Arizona did have a history of sightings but that was new. Sam and Kaid waved goodbye to them and waited for the bus. 

“Really hoping we don’t see another one of those UFO things again,” Kaid said. 

“Me neither. Or maybe if we do Chelsie will be around to see it too?” 

Kaid wagged his tail in agreement. 

When they got home it was dark and Sam hooked his phone up to the printer to get a copy of the photo from the mall. He taped it up beside his ‘I want to believe’ poster and they felt less afraid.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> what if ❓you 👆wanted to go to 🌤 👼 heaven but ✋ god said 😡 “nah remember that time you ate blackberries at the mall nephew?”

**Author's Note:**

> there are two satellites 
> 
> one is really big and another one is pink /most/ of the time. Rose. Vishnu is a absolute unit. Sam and Kaid are good boys that like kpop. I’m not projecting I swear


End file.
